1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the processing of cereal grains for the production of animal feed and, more particularly, is concerned with a machine and method for roasting any cereal grain, such as soybeans, corn, wheat, barley, oats and the like, so as to convert its nutrients to a more digestable form and thereby increase the food value of the grain.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Grains from any of several cereal crops rank among the most important sources of food for livestock, poultry and other animals. Their high starch content makes them an excellent source of energy. Cereal grains most widely used in the United States include corn, oats, sorghum and barley. For example, by one account, farmers use about 80 percent of the U.S. corn crop as livestock feed.
Processing of grain to increase its nutritional value is a common practice. Any grain can be processed into feed. However, some can be fed directly in their natural state. For instance, corn is oftentimes fed directly. Still, there are many situations where farmers prefer to feed grains after limited processing, for example, corn after being mechanically cracked and other grains, such as oats and barley, after being mechanically rolled, to increase their digestability. These processing operations can generally be performed with equipment available for use on the farm.
On the other hand, some other cereal grains are unsuited for direct feeding in their natural state. They must be processed first to eliminate the harmful substances they contain naturally. For instance, soybeans have to be processed before being fed to livestock. Furthermore, heretofore, the conventional view has been that such processing has to be done off the farm at commercial plants in order to effectively remove the toxic enzymes in the raw soybeans and convert them into an edible form. Thus, since processed soybean meal is highly regarded as a source of protein and other nutrients, most farmers have fed their livestock a combined ration of grain in its natural state, or after limited on-the-farm processing, and mixed feeds commercially processed and prepared at off-the-farm commercial plants. Of course, the need to purchase commercially processed mixed feeds to supplement the natural grain fed to livestock substantially increases the cost of livestock feed for the farmer.
There is a growing view which takes the position that farmers can substantially eliminate the need for costly commercially processed feed supplements, such as soybean meal, by taking much less costly steps on the farm to produce their own protein and increase the overall nutrient value of their grains. This is accomplished by roasting soybeans as well as any other of the cereal grains. A feed ration of roasted grains and roasted soybeans, in which a pound of on-the-farm roasted soybeans is exchanged for a pound of off-the-farm, commercially-processed soybean meal, will lower the cost and proportionately increase the profitability of livestock and poultry production operations for everyone from the smallest family farm to the largest cattle ranch.
It is believed that dry heat at a high temperature destroys the toxic enzymes in the raw soybeans which interferes with digestion and growth in all animals. The process of roasting in an open flame sterilizes the grain, reducing toxicity. Also, importantly, oil and soy lecithin are retained in the whole roasted soybean. They are excellent sources of concentrated energy. By roasting the soybean, it is converted to a more digestable form. Packing extra energy into the feed ration will consistently increase livestock and poultry production on less feed which greatly improves feed efficiency. Roasting of other grains has beneficial results also. It destroys mold and changes the starches to dextrin, a simple form of carbohydrate that can be readily digested and more freely utilized by the animal.
Consequently, a need exists for a technique of roasting cereal grains on the farm which will effectively process the grains such that the aforementioned objectives will be achieved. Many different machines appear in the prior art for drying and roasting different materials. Representative of the prior art are the machines disclosed in Madsen (U.S. Pat. No. 1,987,242), Raypholtz (U.S. Pat. No. 2,506,739), Magnusson et al (U.S. Pat. No. 2,709,306), Madsen (U.S. Pat. No. 3,024,538) and Butler (U.S. Pat. No. 4,189,300) for drying aggregate, in Adt (U.S. Pat. No. 2,354,567) for drying tobacco, in Stephens (U.S. Pat. No. 2,388,298) for roasting coffee, beans, grains and the like, in Bill (U.S. Pat. No. 2,578,166) for drying chopped hay, grasses, vegetable crops and the like, in Rossi (U.S. Pat. No. 3,331,142) for drying and toasting bread crumbs, and in Dahlund (U.S. Pat. No. 3,406,465) for drying grain.
While all of the above-cited prior machines probably operated reasonably well and generally achieved their objectives under the range of operating conditions for which they were designed, none appears to be particularly useful for the purpose of roasting grain to increase its food value and, thus, a need still exists for an alternate machine which is simplier, less costly and will effectively roast grains so as to make them more digestable and enhance their nutritional value as livestock feed.